Building with rotatable observation structure



Nov. 10, 1964 FAERBER 3,156,017

BUILDING WITH ROTATABLEZ OBSERVATION STRUCTURE Filed Jan. 16, 1959 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR. LEOPOLD FAERBER,

g /JMW HIS ATTORNEY L. FAERBER Nov. 10, 1964 7 BUILDING WITH ROTATABLE'. OBSERVATION STRUCTURE 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Jan. 16, 1959 INVENTOR: LEO Po LD FAER BER,

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United States Patent "ce 3,156,017 BUILDING WITH RGTATABLE 0BERVAT10N STRUCTURE Leopold Faerher, Tewaagstrasse 11, Dortmund, Germany Filed Jan. 16, 1959, Ser. No. 787,178 7 Claims. (Cl. 29-4) The invention relates to tall buildings such as towers or the like, and relates more particularly to such buildings that carry near the top an observation structure, such as a watchtower or restaurant or lookouts or the like.

In restaurants or lookouts of this type, people wishing to look around from that place need to walk around if they wish to take in the entire panorama. In restaurants of this type, walking around is not always feasible, so that the patrons will be relegated to viewing just a portion of the entire landscape.

The invention has among its principal objects to provide for such a building that has an upper structure which is rotatable. It is another object of the invention to provide for a building of this type which has a console surrounding a hollow shaft, and a rotatable structure has a bottom that extends substantially throughout the area of the console and is supported thereby and is rotated about the axis of the hollow shaft.

The foregoing and other objects of the invention will be best understood from the following description of exemplifications thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view showing an embodiment of the invention; and

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary vertical sectional View similar to FIG. 1 but embodying a modification.

In carrying the invention into effect in the embodiments which have been selected for illustration in the accompanying drawings and for description in this specification, and referring now particularly to FIG. 1, there is provided a hollow vertical shaft 1 that forms part of the upper portion of a tall building (not shown) such as a tower or the like. The shaft 1 may be provided in its interior with stairs, or may carry in its interior elevators, and has openings 2 for entry from the shaft interior into the structure that surrounds the shaft 1 and which may house for instance a restaurant, and for egress therefrom. Doors may be provided to close the openings 2.

As best shown in FIG. 1, the structure may be an enclosure structure closed by a windowed wall 11 and may be extending throughout several, such as three-building stories.

From the shaft 1 there extends an annular console 3 that surrounds the shaft 1 and that defines an upper surface 4 which forms a raceway for rollers 5 of a roller bearing 6. The rollers 5 are disposed radially and extend substantially throughout the width of the annular raceway 4. The rollers 5 support a platform 7 which forms the bottom for the enclosure structure, and the platform 7 extends substantially throughout the same annular as the surface 4 of the console. As shown in FIG. 1, all of the stories may be supported from the single platform 7. If desired, the entire height of the structure may instead be formed without subdivisions as one big area. A restaurant may be housed in the enclosure structure. The enclosing wall 11 preferably has an extension 12 that, to improve the rigidity of the structure, reaches to a point below the top surface 4 of the console 3.

' The annular platform 7 defines on its bottom surface a raceway, and the rollers 5 define with the raceways'of the platform and of the console an anti-friction bearing on which the platform 7 including the entire enclosure structure can rotate about the axis of the hollow shaft 3,156,017 Patented Nov. 10, 1964 1. Since the raceways are almost of the same area, the console 3 supports substantially throughout its area the enclosure structure.

On the platform 7 there is mounted a motor 8 which carries a pinion that meshes with an annular rack 10 which is secured to the console 3. Rotation of the pinion Q by the motor 8 will therefore cause rotation of the platform 7 about the axis of the shaft 1.

Means may be provided (not shown) to ascertain that the openings 2 may be passed by people only when the enclosure structure is at standstill.

By operation of the motor 8, the enclosure structure in its entirety is caused to rotate slowly, somewhat in the manner of a merry-go-round, affording the people in the various stories of the restaurant to take in the entire panorama.

Instead of mounting the enclosing wall 11 on to the structure and letting it participate in the rotation throughout the various stories, the arrangement may be modified as shown in FIG. 2. In accordance with that modification, each story of the structure is rotated separately and is supported by a separate console, and the enclosure wall stands still. There is provided a series of consoles 17, each supporting a separate platform 14. The consoles 17 are spaced apart vertically from each other defining above each a building story 13. Each console 17 defines again on its top a raceway surface on which there are disposed radially arranged rollers 5 which support the individual platforms 14 in each story. Each platform 14 has a motor 8 which drives a pinion 9 that meshes with an annular rack that is secured to each console 17. Each platform 14 thus may be rotated about the axis of the hollow shaft 1, and the interior of each story 13 may be reached through an opening 2 in the shaft wall. The enclosing wall 11 is connected to the consoles 17 and has again an extension 12 reaching below the top surface of the lowermost console.

In accordance with this modification, each story housing for instance a restaurant or other place of gathering of people may be rotate-d separately from the others.

I wish it to be understood that I do not desire to be limited to the exact details of construction shown and described, for obvious modifications will occur to a person skilled in the art.

Having thus described the invention, what I claim as new and desire to be secured by Letters Patent, is as follows:

1. in a high tower building having a vertical hollow shaft supported on the ground, the combination of at least one console spaced at considerable height above the ground and mounted on and surrounding said shaft annularly, said shaft engaging the inner portion of said console and said engagement forming the sole support for said console,, whereby the major portion of the cantilevered console is free from any support vertically below it, a structure supported on said major portion of said console and surrounding said shaft and rotatable about the axis of said shaft, said console forming the sole support for said structure, driving means between said console and said structure operable for rotating said structure, said shaft defining an opening for intercommunication between the shaft and structure interiors, anti-friction bearing means between said console and said structure, and an enclosure wall surrounding said structure and extending to a point below the topmost portion of said console and having windows.

2. In a high tower building supported on the ground inner portion of said console, said engagement forming the sole support for said console, said console defining an upper annular raceway, the major portion of the cantilevered console being free from any support vertically below it, an observation enclosure structure surrounding said shaft portion and rotatably supported by said major portion of the console, said console forming the sole support for said structure, said shaft having means for entry into and egress from the interior of said enclosure structure, means operable for rotating said en closure structure, and rollers disposed on said raceway and supporting revolubly said enclosure structure.

3. In a building as claimed in claim 2, said means comprising gear means between said console and said enclosure structure, and a motor operable for driving said enclosure structure to rotate about the center of said shaft portion.

4. In a tower having a vertical cylindrical hollow shaft supported on the ground, the combination of an annular console at considerable height spaced above the ground and being mounted on and formed on said shaft, said shaft engaging the inner portion of said console, said engagement forming the sole support for said console, whereby the major portion of the cantilevered console is free from any support vertically below it, an observation enclosure structure surrounding said shaft and revolubly supported by said major portion of said console, said console forming the sole support for said structure, said structure including a bottom, anti-friction bearing means between said bottom of said enclosure structure and said console, means disposed between said console and said bottom for rotating said bottom and thereby said enclosure structure, and an external wall having observation windows and extending throughout the height of said enclosure structure and to a point below the uppermost portion of said console.

5. In a tower as claimed in claim 4, said anti-friction bearing means comprising an annular upper raceway surface defined on said console and a lower annular raceway surface defined on said bottom, and a series of rollers disposed radially and supporting said bottom, said bottom surface extending substantially throughout the area of said console surface.

6. In a tower as claimed in claim 5, each roller exd tending radially substantially throughout the width of the annular raoeway surface defined by said console.

7. In a high tower building having a vertical hollow shaft supported on the ground, in combination, a series of consoles each forming an annular projection spaced above the ground and mounted on and encircling said shaft, said shaft engaging the inner portion of each console, said engagement forming the sole support for each console, said consoles being spaced from each other vertically, defining a series of building stories, said consoles being connected to each other structurally solely by said shaft, whereby the major portion of each console is cantilevered and free from any structural support vercally below it, a structure supported by said major portion of each console and being rotatable about the shaft axis, each console forming the sole support for its surmounting rotatable structure, each structure having a bottom extending substantially throughout the area of its console, anti-friction bearing means between each bottom of a structure and its console, individual driving means disposed between each console and the structure supported thereby for rotation of the structure, and an enclosure wall having windows extending throughout all of said stories and being non-rotatable and connected to said consoles.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,706,538 4/55 Schumann 20-1 2,764,783 10/56 Teller 20-1 2,927,599 3/60 Stetson 20-1 FOREIGN PATENTS 587,734 11/33 Germany. 966,887 3/50 France.

OTHER REFERENCES P. 80, vol. 94, Issue No. 1, January 1951, Architectural Forum.

JACOB L. NACKENOFF, Primary Examiner.

WILLIAM I. MUSHAKE, Examiner. 

1. IN A HIGH TOWER BUILDING A VERTICAL HOLLOW SHAFT SUPPORTED ON THE GROUND, THE COMBINATION OF AT LEAST ONE CONSOLE SPACED AT CONSIDERABLE HEIGHT ABOVE THE GROUND AND MOUNTED ON AND SURRONDING SAID SHAFT ANNULARLY, SAID SHAFT ENGAGING THE INNER PORTION OF SAID CONSOLE AND SAID ENGAGEMENT FORMING THE SOLE SUPPORT FOR SAID CONSOLE, WHEREBY THE MAJOR PORTION OF THE CANTILEVERED CONSOLE IS FREE FROM ANY SUPPORT VERTICALLY BELOW IT A STRUCTURE SUPPORTED ON SAID MAJOR PORTION OF SAID CONSOLE AND SURROUNDING SAID SHAFT AND ROTATABLE ABOUT THE AXIS OF SAID SHAFT, SAID CONSOLE FORMING THE SOLE SUPPORT FOR SAID STRUCTURE, DRIVING MEANS BETWEEN SAID CONSOLE AND SAID STRUCTURE OPERABLE FOR ROTATING SAID STRUCTURE, SAID SHAFT DEFINING AN OPENING FOR INTERCOMMUNCIATION BETWEEN THE SHAFT AND STRUCTURE INTERIORS, ANTI-FRICTION BEARING MEANS BETWEEN SAID CONSOLE AND SAID STRUCTURE, AND AN ENCLOSURE WALL SURROUNDING SAID STRUCTURE AND EXTENDING TO A POINT BELOW THE TOPMOST PORTION OF SAID CONSOLE AND HAVING WINDOWS. 